Jackson Prep's Reed Kellum flys into home following a 3 run homer in the fifth inning against Jackson Academy during the Patriots 15-3 win in the MAIS AAAA Division 1 Baseball Championships held at Raider Park Park Wednesday May 15, 2018.(Bob Smith-For The Clarion Ledger)
Bob Smith/For Clarion Ledger

It took every inning of Game 1 of the Academy AAAA Division I title series between Jackson Prep and Jackson Academy to determine a victor. That wasn't the case in Game 2.

In the decisive contest of the title series between the rivals, Jackson Prep found a way to carry over the offensive production from the latter innings of Game 1. The Patriots exploded for 13 runs in three innings en route to a 15-3 victory over the Raiders that clinched the school's fifth title on the diamond in six years.

"It feels good just to be a part of so many of them," Jackson Prep coach Brent Heavener said. "We've had a lot of good players come in front of us. I've won a couple as an assistant and now as a head coach and I couldn't be more proud of [these guys]."

How it happened

In the early portions of the game, all signs pointed to yet another contest like Tuesday's 6-5 thriller at Jackson Prep. Chance Lovertich got the scoring started in the opening frame with a two-run double, but Trent Tyre sent a bomb of an equalizer over the left-center field fence to knot things up in the same inning.

JA then took its first lead of the game on a second-inning solo shot by Garrett Clarke. The Patriots responded swiftly, with Jake Maloney getting an RBI on a fielder's choice and Reed Kellum following it with an infield RBI-single that put his team ahead 4-3 in the third.

The Turning Point

After the Patriots took a lead they wouldn't relinquish, Jackson Academy head coach Jay Powell said he felt the momentum shifted in the opposition's favor.

"I really think the turning point was the third inning when we had runners on first and second with no outs and we couldn't score a run. I felt like the momentum shifted then, and as it shifted we just couldn't get it back," he said.

During that crucial juncture of the contest, the Raiders also committed their second error of the night when a grounder by Lovertich was mishandled. Jerrion Ealy reached home plate on the play, putting the Pats up 5-3 and setting off a sequence of events that would end with them racking up 10 more runs.

The impressive stretch was highlighted by a two-run double by Maloney and a three-RBI homer by Reed Kellum.

"We were feeling it. We were going up there with good approaches," Lovertich said. "We knew we had to go up there and hit the ball and get some runs for our pitchers and that's what we did today."

Super Senior

After the game, Heavener was asked who he felt deserved to be the series' Most Valuable Player. He didn't hesitate to give the nod to Lovertich, citing his contributions not just in the title series but throughout the season.

The senior finished the series with four hits, four RBI and five runs. In the Game 1 win, he pitched six innings with three strikeouts and allowed three earned runs.